Photographer John Hook and his wife, daughter, and friends booked their tickets for Amtrak’s Coast Starlight because of its vintage dining car, which has swivel chairs, wide-open windows, and deep purple curtains always pulled open to frame the view. This was where the crew of 12 read books, took pictures, snacked, and admired the coastline as they traveled from Los Angeles to Oregon. During the 30-hour trip, they left this spot only to wander through coach and rest in their sleeping cars. By the time they arrived in Portland the following day, they had befriended the woman selling food and drinks and were reluctant to deboard. “I actually wished the train ride was longer,” Hook says. “The views out the window once you get into Oregon are great.” After overnighting in the city, Hook got back behind the wheel so the group could return to the coast. There, they encountered beaches large enough to drive and camp on, with sprawling spreads of sand and views of the sea.
“The Oregon coast is magical,” says John Hook, and “the views out the window once you get into Oregon are great.”
This coastline of Cannon Beach, a small city only 90 minutes from Portland, includes Ecola Point, which offers a view of staggering rocks jutting out of the sea, and Hug Point, where a waterfall cascades to the beach.
The daily Amtrak train Coast Starlight offers views of mountain peaks, valleys, and the Pacific coastline as it travels from Los Angeles to Seattle by way of San Francisco and Portland, with coach seats as well as sleeper cars that come with access to a vintage dining car.